Heater and heat saver



' Feb. 10. 1925.

J. M. WHITCOMB HEATER AND HEAT SAVER hes-Sheet. 1

FiledJan. 18- 1 M. M M? Feb. 10. 1925.

' J. M. WHITCOMB HEATER AND HEAT SAVER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2 Filed Jan. 18- 1924 J0 /4 .3 30

Patented Feb. 10, 1925.

UNITED STATES JOHN M. WHITCOMB, OF REDWOOD FALLS, MINNESOTA.

HEATER AND HEAT SAVER.

Application filed January 18, 1924. Serial No. 686,987.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, JOHN M. \VHITCOMB,

a citizen of the United States, residing at Redwood Falls, in the county of Redwood and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Heaters and Heat Savers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and

exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its object to provide an improved heater for use in connection with oil, gas and other burners, and is.well

adapted to be interposed in the smoke pipe of a. furnace as a fuel saver.

To the above end, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of devices hereinafter described and defined in the claims. I

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the invention, like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a view of a building in transverse section, and also illustrating in diagram the invention interposed betwen two smoke pipes leading from a pipeless furnace to a chimney; Fig. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the invention, on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 3 is a detail view in section taken on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view partly in plan and partly in horizontal sect-ion taken on the line 41 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a view principally in section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a transverse section taken on line 66 of Fig. 5-; and

Fig. 7 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in longitudinal vertical section, illustrating-a slight modification of the invention in Which the smoke and flame chamber is made in sections.

The numeral 8 indicates a building, and the numeral 9 indicates a chimney leading from the basement of said building, through the top thereof.

In the basement of the bulding 8 is a pipeless furnace indicated as an entirety by the numeral 10 with the exception of two smoke pipes 11 which lead to the chimney 9. The

parts thus far, described have been illustrated simply for the purpose of illustrating the invention in working position.

The improved heater, as shown, is interposed between the smoke pipe sections 11 and includes inner and outer shells 12, and 13, respectively, spaced, the one from the other, to afford an air chamber 14, which extends completely around the inner shell 12. Within the shell 12 is a. heating chamber or a smoke and flame chamber 15 through which extends a multiplicity of upright flues 16 which lead from the bottom of the air chamber 14 to the top thereof. It will be noted that the shells 12 and 13 are formed from sheet metal with the exception of the top and bottom members of the shell 12 which, as shown, are cast and have flanged openings to receive the fiues 16.

The inner shell 12 is supported on brackets 17 secured to the outer shell 13. It will be noted that the depth of they air space under the inner shell 12 is materially greater than the width of the air spaces at the sides and ends thereof. The smoke pipe 11 leading from the furnace 10 opens into the smoke and flame chamber 15 at the front near the top thereof. The other smoke pipe 11 leads from the rear of the smoke and flame chamber 15 near the top thereof and extends to the chimney 9. Extending trans versely within the smoke and flame chamber 15 and between the transverse rows of flues 16 are a multiplicity of battle plates 18 that are reversely extended and staggered to cause the products of combustion from the furnace 10 to travel in a zigzag course through the smoke and flame chamber 15 and around the flues 16 from one section of the smoke pipe 11 to the other, as indicated by the arrows marked on Fig. 5.

A cold air intake duct 19 leads from a register 20 in the floor of the room on the first floor of the building 8 and opens into the air chamber 14 at the front thereof and below the inner shell 12, as best shown in Fig. 5. The top of the air chamber 14 above the inner shell 12 opens directly into a collecting chamber 21 which leads to a register 22 in the same floor with the register 20. The registers 20 and 22 and the register for the smokeless furnace 10 must of course beso located in respect to each other and the room into which they open as to secure the greatest heating efficiency.

Cold air entering the air chamber 14 through the air intake duct 19 passes upward through the flues 16 and the air chamber 14 which, as previously stated, surrounds the inner shell 12, as indicated by the arrows in Figs. 2, 4:, 5 and 6.

In the front of the smoke and flame chamber is a combustion chamber 23 separated therefrom by an inclined deflecting wall 24: which extends from the bottom of said combustion chamber but terminates short of the top thereof to afl'ord a smoke and flame passageway 25 that leads from the combustion chamber 23 to said chamber 15, as shown in Fig. 3. It will be noted that the deflecting wall 24 is so inclined as to contract the upper end of the combustion chamber 23. Said combustion chamber 23 has a damperequipped door 26 mounted on the outer shell 13, above the air intake duct 19, normally closing a door opening leading to the combustion chamber 23.

Mounted in the combustion chamber 23 is a heater which, as shown, is in the form of an oil burner 27 to which leads a valve-controlled fuel supply pipe 28. It is, of course, understood that any suitable kind of a burner or heating element may be substituted for the oil burner 27.

It is important to note that the cold air from the duct 19 is introduced into the air chamber 1 1 at its hottest point, to wit: where the smoke pipe 11, from the furnace 10, opens into the smoke and flame chamber 15 and adjacent to the oil burner 27. The cold air, after leaving the duct 19, passes under the inner shell 12, is heated as it rises in the air chamber 14 and flues 16 and is conveyed by the collecting chamber 21 to the register 22 where it enters the room on the first floor of the building 8. I

'From the above description it is evident that the cold air taken from the room to be heated absorbs substantially all of the heat from the burner 27, before it again enters the room to heat the same. thus allowing only little to escape to the chimney 9. 'The heat escaping from the furnace 10 through the smoke pipes 11 is also used in heating the cold air taken from the room, and only enough escapes to the chimney 9 to create the necessary draft.

The smoke and flame chamber 15 may be made in sections, as shown in Fig. 7 to permit two or more sections to be put together so that sufiicient radiating surface may be provided so as to carry off substantially all of the heat from the burner 27 and escaping through the smoke pipes 11.

When two or more sections of the smoke and flame chamber 15 are used, the ends of adjacent sections, of course, must be removed to afford a free passageway from one smoke pipe 11 to the other.

As shown in Fig. 1, the invention is supported on a frame 29. Cleanout openings 30 for the smoke and flame chamber 15 extend through the two shells 12 and 13. In actual practice, the smoke pipe 11 at the furnace 10 will be provided with a solid damper so as to close said section when only the burner 27 is used.

What I claim is:

1. The combination with a furnace and a chimney, of inner and outer shells spaced to afford an-air chamber therebetween, a smoke and flame chamber in the inner shell, a'

smoke pipe leading from the furnace and opening into the smoke and flame chamber at the front thereof, a second smoke pipe leading from the smoke and flame chamber at the rear thereof and opening into the chimney, air flues extending through the smoke and flame chamber and leading from the bottom of the air chamber to the top thereof, batfle plates in the smoke and flame chamber arranged to cause the products of combustion to travel from one smoke pipe section to the other in a zigzag course through the smoke and flame chamber and around theair flues, a cold air intake duct opening into the air chamber at the front thereof, and a collecting chamber leading from the air chamber, a combustion chamber opening into the smoke and flame chamber at the front thereof, and a burner in said combustion chamber.

2. The combination with a furnace and a chimney, of a heater comprising a smoke and flame chamber and an air chamber, said smoke pipes leading one from the smoke and flame chamber and the other from said chamber to the chimney, a cold air intake duct opening intothe air chamber at the front thereof, a collecting chamber leading from the smoke and flame chamber. a combustion chamber opening into the air chamher at the front thereof, and a burner in said combustion chamber.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

JOHN M. VVHITCOMB. 

